PS4A Picks: the return of the Rising Sun

Not for the first time, today’s PS4A Picks is dominated by awesome Japanese games, including Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 + 2.5 ReMix, Nier: Automata, Persona 5 and Zero Escape: The Nonary Games, with the amazing Horizon: Zero Dawn representing the West.

DolphGB

I’ve been away recently, and since I don’t take my PS4 on transatlantic flights, I sometimes miss out on playing the latest titles as they launch. That was the case with Horizon: Zero Dawn. I wasn’t able to even start Aloy’s story until three weeks after launch. Thankfully, it was worth the wait, and then some.

Simply put, Horizon is probably the best game I’ve played since The Last of Us on the PS3. It is almost faultless. The controls are perfectly weighted and give you a tremendous sense of control. The graphics are to die for, and sometimes I find myself just walking around doing nothing other than gasping in awe at the scenery. The story is compelling, beautifully told, and intrigues from the very first moment. The sound and music are spot on too – in particular, the ambient noise that surrounds you as you move through the landscape and urban areas. The battles are awesome, the weapons are outstanding, and everything just works. If I have one gripe, it is that the climbable routes aren’t as well marked out as they should be, but other than that, I can’t fault it.

And the depth? Well, that’s the most remarkable thing of all. In addition to a superb main story, you have eight other classes of ‘mission’ to dig into, including errands, side missions, hunts, explorations, and more. I’ve found a new favourite obsession on the PS4, so you can expect to hear a lot more about Aloy’s exploits in the coming weeks. If you don’t have Horizon: Zero Dawn yet, you’re missing out on one of the best games ever created.

Mitch

At 99:39 hours, I’ve finished Persona 5 and fell completely in love with it. Few games are this outstanding, and I’m already eager to play through it again. It’s truly one of the best games ever made. If you enjoy games with well-written stories and characters, then you should definitely give it a try, as it excels in every aspect. If someone asked me which game comes closest to perfection, Persona 5 would be my answer. Persona 4 Golden may still be my favourite game of all time, but P5 is a very close second, and I’m proud to say that. Well done, Atlus; you’ve really outdone yourselves, and I’m excited to hopefully to see more of the Persona 5 world in the future. Fingers crossed for an anime and another fighting game or other spin-off. Honestly, you should really play Persona 5. You won’t regret it.

I’ve also played a whole lot of Nier: Automata, which I’ve now finished. I clocked in around 30 hours to complete the five main endings (including the true ending) and loved it. It tells a very human story, despite being a tale about androids and machines, but its narrative is wonderful and thought-provoking, and I’d happily play through it again. I do still prefer the first game, but this is a worthy sequel and amongst the best games that I’ve played on PS4. I hope Square Enix and Yoko Taro can get to work on another Nier title, and hopefully remaster the first game!

Sam

It’s here! Everyone, the wait is over! No, not Horizon, and not Persona either. I’m getting excited by a compilation of remastered PS2, PSP and DS games. OK, I admit that when you say it like that it sounds terrible. But anyway, Kingdom Hearts is on PS4 and has already swallowed most of my gaming time. I never played the first one when I was younger, although to be fair I was only five when it came out.

To be honest, based on how difficult I’m finding it in some areas, I’m glad I didn’t play the original KH back then, as I think it would have scared me off gaming. Kingdom Hearts II, however, I loved as a child, and now I actually have a chance to finish it! The series was a hugely ambitious project, but it achieves what it set out to do perfectly. My only hope is that Kingdom Hearts III will feature Marvel and Star Wars. I mean, as Disney own those franchises now, why not?

Stefan

The main game I’ve been playing over the last few weeks is the amazing Zero Escape: The Nonary Games – a PS4 remaster of the first two Zero Escape visual novels. The second game in the series (Virtue’s Last Reward) has been my favourite game on PS Vita since its release back in 2012, but this is the first time I’ve had the pleasure of playing the first game (Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors), as it had previously only been available on Nintendo DS.

I was on the edge of my seat from start to finish with 999’s bloody tale of murder and revenge, and have now unlocked each of the game’s six endings, and have just started VLR. These aren’t usually my kind of game at all, but the gripping story and smart puzzles come together to form an incredible experience that is unlike anything else I’ve played. I purposefully haven’t mentioned much about the specific plot here, as it is something you need to see for yourself. If you enjoy whodunnits, even if you’ve never played a visual novel before, I implore you to give The Nonary Games a try.

Stefan Hutchings

My first venture into the world of game consoles was with the PSone, which I received for Christmas in 1999 at the age of nine. Ever since then I’ve been a huge fan of both the PlayStation brand and videogames in general. I have an extremely diverse taste in genres, although my preference is usually for action/adventure games, platformers and RPGs.

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